One has to scroll down the website of Berlin's Pop-Kultur festival to see the "offending" item, the emblem of the Israeli Embassy — one of six state sponsors of the three-day event, which opens Wednesday.
After the embassy awarded three Israeli artists 1,200 € ($1,370) towards their travel and accommodation costs, the BDS movement — a global campaign to boycott Israeli products and services — demanded a boycott of the popular music and arts festival.
US musician John Maus, Scottish singer-songwriter Alun Woodward, English musician Nadine Shah and her countryman Richard Dawson, the post-punk trio Shopping, and Welsh artist Gwenno seem to have heeded the call. They've cancelled their appearances at Pop-Kultur, justifying their decision with the current political situation involving Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Repeat of last year
This is not the first time that the festival has announced canceled performances. Several artists pulled out of last year's festival as well. BDS — which stands for Boycott, Disinvestment and Sanctions — hailed their withdrawl a great success.
BDS supporters claim that they are inspired by the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa. Launched in 2005 by several Palestinian organizations, the movement calls for Israeli goods to be boycotted, economic investments withdrawn and artists' performances cancelled.
Prominent supporters of the campaign include musician and Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters, music producer and ambient pioneer Brian Eno and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu.
Read more: German cities split with 'anti-Semitic' BDS boycott movement
Other events impacted
Stefanie Carp, director of the Ruhrtriennale, an annual arts festival in western Germany, recently came under fire after inviting Young Fathers to perform. The Scottish band have aligned themselves with the BDS campaign.
After the group first agreed, only to later pull out, Carp opted to instead host a panel discussion featuring two BDS supporters. The lack of opposing voices on the panel led North Rhine-Westphalian governor Armin Laschet to stay away from the festival altogether.
Germany's anti-Semitism commissioner Felix Klein has accused the BDS movement of being "anti-Semitic in its methods and goals." In a guest article for the German daily Die Welt, he said that the movement uses "unbearable” methods from the Nazi era that "must neither be condoned nor tolerated.”
Read more: Israel announces travel ban on pro-Palestinian boycott advocates
Organizers dismiss boycott
Pop-Kultur, which hopes to attract around 10,000 music fans from August 15 to 18, has dismissed the BDS activists' claims that Israel's investment in culture is glossing over the actions of the Jewish-majority state in its ongoing conflict with the Palestinians.
"This type of cooperation is common practice at festivals, exhibitions and events of all genres in international cultural exchange," the festival said in a statement.
Pop-Kultur added that France's Le Bureau Export has also offered travel grants to artists from the country, as have the British Council and its Austrian and Norwegian counterparts.
Organizers insisted they won't be intimidated by the boycott, seeing "the festival's role in overcoming boundaries and creating room for dialogue."
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Roger Waters, Pink Floyd co-founder
Waters supports the British branch of the "Artists for Palestine" organization and thus the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestinian rights and statehood. BDS is asking musicians to cancel concerts in Israel as part of a broader boycott aimed at putting pressure on the Israeli government to end illegal settlements, for example.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Kate Tempest, rapper and Artist for Palestine
She supports Artists for Palestine and makes it clear that she is appalled by the actions of the Israeli government against the Palestinians. "After much thought, I joined the cultural boycott as an act of protest," she said. She has rejected accusations of being anti-Semitic and says she is of Jewish decent. As a result of pressure from both sides. she canceled an October concert in Berlin.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Elvis Costello: a matter of 'conscience'
For years, well-known bands and musicians have canceled concerts in Israel. They include Carlos Santana, the Pixies and Elvis Costello, who in 2010 explained the reason for his boycott. Writing on his website, he said it's "a matter of instinct and conscience" to protest "conditions that visit intimidation, humiliation or much worse on Palestinian civilians in the name of national security."
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Depeche Mode stay silent
During their Delta Machine Tour of 2013-14, the English new wave band shared every day of their tour extensively online. But they did not say a word about the gig in Tel Aviv. Were Depeche Mode ashamed about the concert? In mid 2006, the band had canceled a show in Israel for political reasons due to the ongoing Lebanon war.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Johnny Rotten: no problems with Israeli
After calling for anarchy in the UK with the Sex Pistols, he uses real name Johnny Lyden with band PiL these days, and was happy to play a concert in Tel Aviv in 2010 after Elvis Costello had announced his Israel boycott. His reasoning: "Until I see an Arab country, a Muslim country, with a democracy, I won't understand how anyone can have a problem with how [the Palestinians] are treated."
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Elton John takes to the stage
Elton John has often performed in Israel but has faced increasing pressure from the BDS movement since it was founded in 2005. The petitioning hasn't worked, with the Rocket Man playing sold-out Tel Aviv shows in 2016 and 2010, when he greeted fans with the words: "Shalom! We're spreading peace and love on this stage and we're happy to be here."
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
An 'extremely upsetting experience' for Radiohead
Radiohead were also under massive pressure in July 2017 before their gig in Israel. But singer Thom Yorke spoke of his decision to reject a petition signed by Desmond Tutu, Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth and others asking Radiohead not to play: "There's an awful lot of people who don't agree with the BDS movement, including us. I don't agree with the cultural ban at all," he told Rolling Stone.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Michael Stipe encourages dialogue
The R.E.M. singer spoke out publicly during the intensifying debate around the Radiohead's looming appearance in Israel — its first since 2000. "I stand with Radiohead and their decision to perform. Let’s hope a dialogue continues, helping to bring the occupation to an end and lead to a peaceful solution." R.E.M. and Radiohead toured Israel together in 1995.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Nick Cave: stands against 'censorship'
The Facebook page "Nick Cave, Hold On to Yourself - Don't Play Apartheid" was set up as part of the Artists for Palestine campaign to encourage Cave to cancel his November 2017 concert in Tel Aviv. But he still played, saying: "[It] became very important to make a stand against those people who are trying to shut down musicians, to bully musicians, to censor musicians, and to silence musicians."
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
'Bryan, tell the world again that you do not support apartheid'
BDS is currently petitioning musician Bryan Adams to "unplug from Israeli apartheid" and cancel scheduled December concerts in Israel. Adams once said that the war in Gaza was a war against humanity. In addition, he canceled his Mississippi tour in 2016 in protest against the homophobic laws there. But Adams hasn't listened to BDS and instead will perform an additional concert in Jaffa.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Boney M in Palestine
Concerts in Israel can go on without indignation and protest. In 2010, the German disco pop group Boney M performed in the Palestinian West Bank city of Ramallah, where many Israelis were in the audience. However, they were requested not to sing their biggest hit "Rivers of Babylon," as one line is the biblical yearning for the Land of Zion. The musicians accepted the censorship without complaint.
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Israel boycott: Who joins and who performs?
Lorde scraps tour finale in Tel Aviv
The Croatian-New Zealand performer Lorde originally planned to end her "Melodrama" 2018 tour in Tel Aviv, but reversed this decision on the urging of her fans. In a statement, she said visiting Tel Aviv has long been a dream of hers, and that she hoped one day "we can all dance."
Author: Silke Wünsch (sb)
ld/mm/rf (kna, dpa)
